hackLIBERTY
by Izzydurah
Summary: BT eavesdrops on a suspicious conversation and tells Bear of the unknown danger Crim faces outside of The World. The two put their lives on the line to save another, but will all three be lost?
1. Warning

A/N: My first .hack//SIGN fan fiction and my first fic up on FF.net. I disclaim any rights to the anime series .hack//SIGN and anything legally affliated with; it is property of its respectful owners. However, I do own this tale and the plot, so hah. Now I shall curl under my computer desk and keep waiting for something. XD Read and review and don't feed the Twin Blades.  
  
---  
  
A man sauntered through the streets of a populous city, his large sword slung loosely over his shoulder. He scanned the place left and right, whistling a catchy tune underneath his breath to unleash a cheerful mood. His brown hair hung in bangs near his eyes and spread out above his azure blue painted shoulders. The fatherly-ness of his face present him as a peace-keeping soul with no intention of harm to anyone, but that didn't prevent some of the crowds to sidestep and cast suspicious looks toward him. He chuckled as they did so.  
  
"I'm just on my way to visit a friend," Bear quietly assured them with a wink to himself and another low, throaty chuckle.  
  
His happiness gained a defensive edge as mental directions slid into his mind, beckoning the man to turn into a dingy alleyway and head east. While he squeezed through the tight quarters, shady characters shuffled to make room with questionable glances toward him. His head turned to the left in time for him to see a disgusting looking woman make a rude gesture toward him as she bared her filthy teeth. Bear's grip on the handle tightened, willing his pace to edge him further faster. This was surely an uncomfortable place and a strange route to take..  
  
After a few minutes of quiet travel, Bear blinked in the sunlight as he emerged from the alley's darkness. It took a few seconds for his eyesight to adjust to the oddly shaped temple before him. Its bricks were gray and dirty, and Bear even noted that the building was leaning to the right - actively, that is. A small breeze swept over the area, pushing the topmost bricks to one side with little to no effort at all. Eyebrows raised and questions bubbling curiously in his mind, he cautiously approached the meeting place.  
  
"Hello?" he called softly once inside. Silence took over once his echo eventually died away. He knew that he wasn't alone, for the presence of another was easily sensed. The person was sure to be careful as to what lurked around these days; monsters could now easily disguise themselves, audibly or visually, as allies to lure victims into their clutches. After what seemed ages, he could wait no longer, and with a small smile, he called the name of his expectant other,  
  
"BT, come on out. I'm harmless, I swear." Bear braved a step forward and was suddenly greeted by a woman's blurred body as she dropped from the ceiling and landed right in front of him. The Wavemaster automatically held out her staff threateningly to the man's throat just in case, refusing to lower it even when he put up his hands in defeat with a playful smirk.  
  
"How do I know you're not Bear?" she asked, raising an eyebrow into the shower of blonde hair that swept into her face.  
  
"If I didn't know better, I'd think you would expect me to rattle off a lot of my personal information."  
  
"Actually, that was the plan, but..." BT lowered her staff to her side, a sly smirk creeping onto her face. "I thought I'd leave all joking aside and get on to serious matters."  
  
"What is it?" Bear asked, face suddenly set. He had a feeling that if BT had to meet him in a place like this, a place where few chose not to avoid, the situation had to be important.  
  
"It's.. It's about Crim."  
  
---  
  
"Is that all you've got?" the turqouise haired man asked his panting opponent. She shook her head, smiling and twisting the handle of her sword around in her palms. Her own reddish brown hair clung to her prespiring, tanned face and her panting became heavier than before. The girl's body was slightly limp, and she even swung her blade with less enthusiasm when she took another blind swing to Crim. Noticing her condition, he skillfully leaped backward and jammed the pole of his weapon into the grass.  
  
[BT voiceover: "Crim does not realize he's in grave danger. I was at the Mac Anu server earlier and overheard a few players talking of a man that perfectly fit Crim's description. You cannot imagine how well he fit it. There were no references for anything involving killing - at least, not in The World. I believe that he may know these players outside of The World, and call me insane, but Bear..."]  
  
"I'm not going to catch you offguard," Crim insisted to a disbeliving Mimiru. "I wouldn't do that.. especially to a female." He smiled; she frowned, but without the attitude to enforce it.  
  
"Are you being sympathatic AND sexist?" she teased.  
  
"Of course not!" he said, taken aback.  
  
"I was just kidding," Mimiru muttered. Crim's face turned slightly scarlet, and his lips broke into another cheshire-cat-like grin.  
  
"Of course, I knew that," he murmured, embarrassed.  
  
"Mmhmm..well, it's not like I'm going to kill you for being dense."  
  
[BT voiceover: "...I'm not sure of the reason, but I think they're plotting to murder Crim."]  
  
---  
  
Bear's face sank into pure surprise. He couldn't believe his ears; either they had failed him or he just didn't want to think what BT had confessed to him was true. Who in the world would try to kill Crim in the real world? Why would they? Was Crim something else other than a bussinessman in real life? Perhaps they were just talking because of a bad bussiness deal? Before the thoughts racing around his brain could tumble out of his mouth in a jumbled sentence, footsteps echoed inside the temple, signaling a new arrival.  
  
BT turned, putting up her staff in defensive as Bear did the same with his sword. From what they could make from the human-shaped shadow creeping on the wall, the arrival seemed unsure. For a few seconds, all was still, save for the distraction of the wind and the torch flames flickering. Then, a voice whispered, "Hello?"  
  
The duo lowered their weapons in unison and smiled.  
  
"What brings you here, Lady Subaru?" asked Bear.  
  
---  
  
How did you like it? ^_^  
  
Sora: I didn't for the sheer fact that it didn't have me in it. I'm supposed to be the star! *unsleathes his blades* Something containing Mimiru MUST have /me/ in it as well!  
  
Izzydurah: Oh, Sora. _ You're not in it because.. well, you're just not in it yet, but I still love you. *cling to her Soraness* Review or I'll force my companion Zak/AlexDelisauce upon you all! BWAHAHA. XD 


	2. Insecurity

A/N: The first chapter was shorter than I actually expected. O_o Well, here's chapter two, because I can! Bwahaha. I disclaim any rights to .hack//SIGN, and I claim the rights to this story. So hah. Haha. Ha. On to the fic and such. _  
  
---  
  
"I heard the conversation," said Subaru, coming within plain sight of the two.  
  
BT and Bear exchanged solemn glances. The girl had already been in enough danger to last a lifetime, and putting her in something such as this would not allow both of them to sleep at night.  
  
"Subaru.." BT began with her voice ridden with concern.  
  
"No, don't say that this is a matter I cannot become involved in," Subaru interjected quickly. "This is a very, very dangerous situation, and it's not an in-World problem. A dear friend's actual life is on the line, and you need all the help you can get to try to save it. We have to do something, quickly."  
  
"BT, why didn't you tell Crim?" Bear asked as Subaru's words wore off his shock and got the gears in his head whirring. "He should have been the first one you notified."  
  
"What if he didn't believe me?" BT replied with a slightly frantic tone. Her stress level rapidly started to rise to an extremely high level. "It's not something you just pop to someone on the moment!"  
  
"Crim has sense enough to know better than to think you're joking about such serious matters!"  
  
"Bear... I thought it would have been better if we talked to him... outside of the game. You don't know where these guys may be, and simply talking about something such as this inside of a game as if we're discussing a weather is stupid!"  
  
"Then why are we doing it now?" Subaru asked sharply. "Why are we just discussing? Why are we standing here talking about what we should have done instead of doing what must be done right now?"  
  
"You can't just suddenly spring, 'Crim, I have to meet you outside of the world.' without launching into a long explaination! We have no time for that!" BT pointed out angrily.  
  
"He trusts me! He trusts all of us, and we /have/ to tell him!" countered Subaru. Her eyebrows arched down further and further down her pinkening face. The aquamarine locks of hair that were brushed back around her face were now randomly spread over it, and her breathing quickened dramatically as if she had just ran a marathon. "We have to tell him," she repeated as calmly as her conscious would allow. "I will arrange a meeting. You two wait near your inboxes and hope. I guess it is sensible to tell him once we're outside The World.."  
  
Bear nodded. "Do it quickly," he urged, imagining what those people may be plotting at the moment.  
  
"I will," the girl said as golden rings encircled her form and carried her away.  
  
"That girl," BT murmured, focusing cold eyes on the spot where Subaru was previously standing. "She..."  
  
"...has matured a lot," her companion finished, placing a firm hand on the Wavemaster's shoulder. "BT, this is not the time to get angry with one another. It is a time for drastic action."  
  
"You call waiting for mail drastic action?!"  
  
"It's all we can do right now, I'm afraid." Weariness and worry embraced Bear as he stood there, sweeping his gaze around the temple. His train of thought raced faster than it ever had in his life, and he also had half the mind to bet on which one would win this race: the mind or the heart. "It's all we can do," he repeated quietly, squeezing BT's shoulder for the sake of her comfort... and his, as well.  
  
---  
  
The sapphire glow of a computer monitor illuminated a woman's face which was wet with flowing tears. Her body quaked as sobs and sorrow poured out of her. She felt absolutely helpless and hopeless; how could she possibly save a man she only knew from an online game? She had never seen him, and would much rather meet him under much, much happier circumstances, but now things were frantic. Subaru would be quick, but she felt that quick wasn't fast enough.  
  
"If only I had real answers," the woman whispered, burying her head in her soaked sweater sleeves. "If someone could just tell me why this was going on, and why I'm suddenly involved in it. Why did I have to be the one to know this was happening?"  
  
"It's alright," came the reply of Bear from her terminal. "It's alright.. just wait.. we can brave this through."  
  
"You sound.. so unsure.."  
  
"I can't help that I am."  
  
"Do you know that the tiniest mistake, or failure to find Crim.. the real Crim.. can just take his life away..? Doesn't he have friends? Or a relative? Or a girlfriend? Or something? Why are we doing this? To help him? Why are we even going as far as trying to meet him outside of The World? We can just warn him and he'll leave his town, won't he? Is there a reason we always have to go that extra mile out of our way and land ourselves in trouble?"  
  
The woman closed her eyes, refusing to hear Bear's mumbled reply. She removed her headset and dropped it onto the desk, then climbed off her chair and onto the floor. She then tried to fit herself as tightly as she could underneath her desk in a fetal position.  
  
"Things aren't going right," she mumbled to herself in an attempt to block out Bear's calls. "I don't think they'll ever will, either...they never will..."  
  
---  
  
Subaru looked at Crim, worry creasing her face. "Please.. you have to.. you have to give me your phone number, Crim. I can't confide such matters to you in a virtual environment. It would be silly, and it would also be risky."  
  
"It's just a game, isn't it?" interrupted Mimiru. She was trembling slightly, suddenly cold and revolted from the information she had just heard. "This is just a stupid game! If you can't talk about serious matters involving in the real world because it's just silly that way, then why would they talk about murdering Crim in the game?"  
  
"I have no idea," Subaru admitted, bowing her head slightly to show she respected and agreed the Heavyblade's statement. "Maybe they don't see it that way. Nonetheless, Crim, I need you phone number and I need it now. I'll pass it along to Bear and BT, and - "  
  
"Bear and BT are in this too?" Mimiru cried in disbelief.  
  
"BT was the one who overheard the conversation, and Bear was the first person she told, " Subaru replied impatiently.  
  
Crim's fearful, widening eyes darted between the two ladies. His churning stomach and melting brain couldn't digest this... it wasn't real, was it?  
  
"Crim, I know you must be very, very scared right now, but you're not alone. We're all scared. But please, we can talk just a little of the shock away on the phone."  
  
He looked at Subaru, who stood on either side of two Mimirus. The colors of their outfits mixed, making Mimiru seem as if she were clad in pink, and Subaru in a shocking bloodshot red.  
  
Crim choked out an indistingushable noise. [Blood]... he thought, trembling vigorously at the thought of himself, drenched in...  
  
"Crim!" the girls cried in unison, running forward to support his straggling body.  
  
"It's done.. I've sent it to you, Subaru," he murmured. "Call when I regain consciousness.."  
  
"Crim!"  
  
---  
  
A wicked grin, the flash of silver, and a blur of green all but gave away another player's position admist the rocks. It was amusing for him to watch them fret and writher in fear because of some stupid death threat that they failed to see was most likely fake if someone actually would mention it on an /online game/. It was also amusing to be up there, to know it all and to laugh at their ignorance when he slipped and swayed in his hiding place, trying hard to catch their attention. But /noooo/; Crim was their only current concern. Crim was only /Mimiru's/ current concern. And that really mad his blood boil.  
  
"If he thinks he can get her member address, let alone her phone number, before I can even have a chance to pounce, he might as well fall dead. That is /my/ territory, and nobody should intrude. However.." Sora rested his hand against the cool feel of one of the blades. "Perhaps I should cut them some slack.. just this once? ... of course not."  
  
The devious Twin Blade sprang up, placed his feet on the slope beside the mound of boulders and pushed his weight forward, surfing down the slant in a cloud of dust. "Yeehaw!" he called, letting his feet trip over another pile of boulders at the bottom just to push himself up with both hands and preform three flips in quick sucession in order to reach the group. When Sora's feet touched the ground, he wobbled slightly and fell forward on purpose to hang on Mimiru's arm which was moving quickly toward her sword.  
  
"Agh!" she cried as Sora wrenched her other arm away from Crim and pulled them both together behind her back.  
  
"Saaay uuuncleeeee," he taunted in a high-pitched voice, twisting the Heavyblade's hands together tightly. "Or I just might have to kiiiiiill you~! Speaking of killing, I heard Crim's going to finally kick the bucket. How does it feel, spending your last moments in fear?" he asked the unconscious man, a wicked gleam in his eye. "Passing out isn't a very good alternative to death."  
  
"You ARE cold hearted monster! This is serious! VERY SERIOUS! And you want to /play/ and /kid/ at a time like THIS?!" screamed Mimiru.  
  
"Hey, no skin off my nose." The Player Killer gripped Mimiru's hands with one hand to free the other, unsleathed one of his wrist blades, and swiftly sliced it through Crim's midsection. The data drain was a rather quick process; Mimiru and Subaru only had to bear the horror of seeing Crim's monochrome body slump forward and disintegrate for a few seconds.  
  
"Now that he's not a distraction..." Sora's grin gleamed in the sun. "Let's have some fun."  
  
---  
  
A/N: I have a feeling that people are going to kill me for making Sora so uncaring to a serious situation. However, I'm a LARGE Sora fan myself and.. well.. I have no idea why, but I needed SOMEONE not to care about this whole thing, and it's Sora I picked. I apologize in advance, but flames really won't help you nor me anyway. _ And, despite its length (it seems really long to me since I'm typing this in Notepad and I have a large font size on O_o), I'm really kicking myself in the head for this chapter. I didn't portray the fear everyone felt for Crim near well enough and I thought I just barely got off my writer's block, hence the overdose of crappiness. Oh, well.. review what you can. x_x; 


	3. Paranoia

A/N: Chapter three! *laughs* Obviously, I procrastinate. :o  
  
//BIG THANKS// to all of you that have reviewed so far! *huggles you guys* I can't keep writing without y'all, y'know? *grins!* Good fortune to all of yeh!  
  
/////BIIIIIIG///// THANK YOU to Crystal (crystalunicorn2) for beta-reading the chapter for errors! ^____^ Love you, dahlink.  
  
Before I go on, I must point out that this chapter (and most likely future ones) implies one sided Sora/Mimiru. If you're not a fan or completely dislike it with a passion or something, don't read. Flames are used to toast marshmellows! Ahem...  
  
So, I disclaim the rights to .hack//SIGN, claim the ones to this story, blah blah blah... and here we gooooo! XD  
  
---  
  
"BT! BT!" Bear practically yelled, trying to get the idling woman's attention. An e-mail arrived just seconds before from Subaru -- the e-mail they were looking for. "BT!" he shouted again. "BT, Subaru's e-mailed us! She has Crim's phone number, but Sora's PKed him, and now she's not sure when's the right time to call him!"  
  
"It doesn't matter if the time is right or not," replied the woman, slowly getting up from her place on the floor. When the headset slipped over her head, she repeated her reply, then added, "E-mail her back and tell her to call until someone answers the phone. I don't care if it's a dog or a particle of dust - we have to reach Crim." BT quickly wiped the remaning tears from her face and heaved a sigh to get rid of any stuttering sobs in her system.  
  
"E-mail her back, Bear," she commanded loudly and firmly.  
  
---  
  
Bear stumbled on the cobblestone-paved path; their fast gating made him rather dizzy. However, BT ignored whatever trace of dizziness she encountered and sprinted off the path toward the open field of grass where she could make out the frantically moving forms of Sora, Subaru, and Mimiru. The figure that seemed to be Sora had Mimiru held captive by her hands, and the third and remaining one, Subaru, was trying hard to free her. She swung her axe multiple times, but the cackling imp merely dodged it as easily as a tick's skilled jump.  
  
"Unhand her!" Subaru screamed, making another rage driven lunge at the lunatic. Sora clicked his tongue and shook his head, amused by Subaru's futile attempts at striking him.  
  
"Uh, uh, uuuuuuuuh, /Laaaaaaaydeeee/ Subaru," the Twin Blade taunted. "You didn't say 'pleeeease'. For someone of your status, you aren't very polite."  
  
"Ugh, you again!" BT yelled to Sora as she closed the space between the group and herself. She stopped just feet away from the scramble, staff up in a position ready for spell-casting and eyebrows arched down angrily. "You disgusting little imbecile! How dare you think to do all of this while something terrible is bound to happen! We were already on the edge, and you've just shoved us off!"  
  
"Hmm? Someone sounds a little /feisty/," he grinned, turning to face the new arrival. "Oh," murmured Sora in a flat, disappointed voice, "it's just -you-. Why do you continually /pester/ me? You're just about everywhere I am."  
  
BT's lips abruptly parted to chant a spell, but Bear held out an arm and turned to the black-and-purple blur. "Sora!" he cried, trying to keep his voice from trembling with rage. "Sora, you have to listen - Crim's life is in jeopardy and you're delaying our attempt to save him! Let go of Mimiru and leave Subaru alone, or it will be too late!"  
  
"I have no idea why you have to be such a wet blanket, old man," Sora sighed. "How many times do I have to tell you? I have power on my side, and I can kill all four of you in one swift stroke." He wrapped and tightened an arm around Mimiru's neck and raised the other one, unsleathing his wrist blade. "This day is just full of death, isn't it?" he chimed in an annoying sing-song voice.  
  
"I'm warning you," Bear rumbled, squeezing the handle of his sword. His eyes were flickering, white-hot flames. "One wrong move, and this old man is taking you home..."  
  
"Stop acting like such a little punk and let the girl go! It's four against one, and even if quantity doesn't matter, I wouldn't give a flying purple cherry if you just killed all of us!" shrieked BT, bringing her staff upon the ground mercilessly. The effects of that simple action were surprising -- the sudden, firm strike upon the ground and mad rush of magic into the earth caused a shockwave that soundlessly spread across the area, knocking anyone or anything standing up for miles around to the ground. When all of them tumbled into the grass in a messy semi-heap, the sound of the wave and the rumble of boulders crashing to the ground came flooding back to their ears long after it happened.  
  
The dust from the boulders engulfed the area, causing everyone to become temporarily blind as to what was going on around them. BT got on her knees and crawled around, chancing the touch of the nearest shoulder. To her relief (and slight displeasure), Subaru held her hand.  
  
"BT - " she started to say.  
  
"Shhh. Log out," BT whispered as quietly as she could, "and I'll pass the word to Bear and Mimiru."  
  
When the message got around to the four, they logged out of the game, one by one. Immediately after Bear vanished from the area, dust settled around Sora, who irritably glanced around.  
  
"They got away," he quickly observed, his eyes widening very slightly. His shocked expression turned into smugness as he stood up and brushed away dirt from his clothes. "That'll be their last time escaping unscathed," Sora laughed, slowly running his tongue along a blade.  
  
---  
  
The phone rang for minutes and minutes, making the girl's anticipation even greater than before. After what seemed like forever, she finally hung up the reciever with a reluctant sigh. Could the shock of the whole thing actually get him that badly? Or..  
  
"He must be frightened," she concluded. "It could be anyone calling his house.. or perhaps he's already gotten a threat call.. or maybe he's not there because..."  
  
Those possiblities were highly likely, and that made the girl tremble despite the humid, sticky temperatures. She had to do something.. call BT or Bear or... something.. but their numbers..? She didn't know them.. she -  
  
You've got mail! chimed the computer as it brought up a flashing envelope on the screen. Subaru eagerly whirled her wheelchair around to face the computer screen and clicked on the envelope. It brought up a rather short message:  
  
'Subaru,  
  
BT and I haven't been able to reach Crim. We're pretty sure you haven't either, but if so, it's obvious that we'd like for you to reply.  
  
Our phone numbers are listed below.  
  
Bear'  
  
Subaru reached over to the opposite table, picked up the reciever, and immediately began to dial with the same hand while somehow still holding that reciever. She pressed it firmly against her ear, waiting patiently as the phone rang a couple of times.  
  
Relief was contained in the voice masculine voice on the other end. "Hello?"  
  
Darkness covered Subaru's face except for her mouth, which curled up in a frantic smile. "Bear?"  
  
---  
  
The walk from school was unbearable. Harsh rays from the sun made the seven- year-old's clothes cling to his sweaty, sticky body. Perspiration rolled down his scowling face, some getting into his already stinging, stone grey eyes, and most nestling in his dark forest green hair.  
  
"What a heat wave this is," said a man to a customer as he swept the sidewalk in front of his perfume shop. "Who knew we could get this type of weather?"  
  
"It's quiet unusual, alright," the woman agreed, furiously fanning herself with a bony hand adorned with two golden rings. "Perhaps the temperature will drop very soon. Nobody can get anything done in this weather. I bet that even criminals might be taking the day off!"  
  
[Hopefully, they will. I'm up to my neck in this garbage that's got those weaklings all jittery and even more stupid that usual..] the boy mused bitterly.  
  
"Or they may be taking advantage of it in some way." The shopkeep shrugged, rolling two thick brass rings around his own fingers. "Never know in this town."  
  
"Nope," said the woman, her mahogany eyes gleaming suspciously.  
  
The boy was fed up with such a pointless conversation and quickened his pace, now half marching to his home. Once he climbed up endless flights of stairs to reach his fifth floor apartment, the boy hesitated on the doorknob. Instead of going in, he pressed his ear against the door, straining to hear any sounds from the inside. There was the usual noise of the TV and.. nothing more. Sighing with relief because his father's heavy, tottering footsteps were completely absent, the boy pushed opened the door, deposited his things near the coat rack, and headed straight upstairs.  
  
His bedroom door creaked open, revealing the room's dark, gloomy condition -- just the way he left it this morning. When the door slammed shut behind him, he cringed, expecting an inhuman roar from down the hall and the clumsy footfalls of his overweight, drunken father. After what seemed like forever, the boy slipped to his computer noiselessly, sank into his chair, and booted it up.  
  
... waiting for internet connection ... -chime- ! Connected.  
  
{}  
  
.... .... Welcome to The World!  
  
USERNAME: PASSWORD:  
  
??   
  
{...Sora bittersweetmelancholy...}  
  
Welcome back, Sora. You have sixteen adminstration warnings, two quests pending, and zero new player-mailed messages.   
  
He breezed through the messages, even becoming a little nostalgic as he quickly scanned a two-month old letter from Mimiru. Instantly, emotional warmth washed over him, despite the cold dampness he felt from the room's atmosphere and high-blast air conditioner. Even though the letter was filled with bitter comments and insults, it made everyting inside of him stir because it was written -by her, to him-.  
  
After lingering in the moment, Sora warped into the Mac Anu server. He set one foot on the bow of a boat docked near the city and scanned the area for any new victims. His search turned up several newbies who seemed to be scurrying around the strangeness of this new game.  
  
What idiots.  
  
"Let the games begiiiiiiin!" the Twin Blade yelled with twisted happiness, showing off his blades for the group to see. Before launching into a homocidal rampage, he cast a weary look behind him as if his biggest fear was to loom over the area, completely forgetting that it wasn't possible for his father to hear him in this virtual getaway.  
  
His once swollen, warm insides suddenly shrank and developed a thick layer of ice.  
  
So if it wasn't possible, why was he still so scared?  
  
---  
  
A/N: Hmm! That last line also applies to more than one person in this story. ^_~ Whee. Review, please! Tell me flaws! Tell me.. other.. such.. things. Except flames. Which will be used to roast the flamers. XD 


End file.
